A sedated horse stands in the equine standing MRI room at the WCVM Veterinary Medical Centre.
A sedated equine patient undergoes an MRI scan at the WCVM Veterinary Medical Centre. Photo: Christina Weese.

Equine standing MRI available for lameness detection

Do you have an equine patient with a mystery lameness? We can help!

MRI scans can help veterinarians detect equine lameness problems that are challenging to diagnose. Photo: Christina Weese

The WCVM Veterinary Medical Centre (VMC) now offers weekly appointments for equine magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans on both Tuesdays and Thursdays — double the availability for referring veterinarians and their equine patients. 

The system allows medical imaging teams to:

  • quickly produce high-quality clinical images of the equine foot, pastern, fetlock and carpus
  • definitively diagnose conditions in both fore and hind suspensory ligaments
  • detect soft tissue lesions in the equine foot or conditions such as navicular syndrome that involve tendons and ligaments
  • diagnose certain forms of lameness up to and including the knee (carpus) and hock (tarsus)

With only sedation required, the hospital's equine standing MRI is a safe, cost-effective option for diagnosing those mystery lamenesses. 

Contact the VMC's Large Animal Clinic at 306-966-7178 for details about the equine standing MRI and the hospital's affordable package.